Hobo Spider
The hobo spider is from the family Agelenidae. The hobo spider is also known as the aggressive house spider. Hobo spiders are found generally in the northwest part of the United States, western Canada, and throughout Europe. The hobo spider usually prefers dry and warm climates and will sometimes live within houses; except for in Europe, in which they are found primarily outside. Hobo spiders are moderately large spiders. The male hobo spider is about twelve to eighteen millimeters and the female is around the same size as the male. The only difference in size is that they have a larger abdomen.
Hobo Spiders
Hobo spiders are brown in color and have no distinct rings on their legs, and they are covered in short hairs. Their abdomens usually have several chevron shaped markings – usually, these markings are common among other spiders and some hobo spiders may not have them at all. Appearance wise, males are notably different from females in that they have two large palps. The palps, which is the male genitalia is often mistaken for fangs or venom sacs. The females also have these palps, but they look different, as they are not swollen like the males.
The hobo spider is usually seen running across floors. The males search for female hobo spiders during mid-summer until early fall, so that is the time when they are most likely to be seen. The hobo spider is a funnel-weaving spider, which means the web that it produces is not sticky, but rather it is meant to be a trip web. The hobo spider will trap insects that cannot maneuver the funnel surface. The hobo spider hides in the back of the funnel waiting for something to get caught in the web. Hobo spiders have been known to sometimes build their webs in or around human habitats.
The hobo spider is not an aggressive spider by nature and will generally avoid humans. However, when a hobo spider is tending to their eggsacs they tend to become even more aggressive and at that point they may attack a human. A hobo spider will usually bite a human due to getting trapped in clothing, in bed sheets, and being trapped next to the skin. The initial bite by the hobo spider usually is not painful, but in about thirty minutes a hard area will appear. Within 15 to 35 hours the sore will blister. The blister will break in around 24 hours, and the wound left behind generally will heal very slowly.
Hobo Spider Bite
The hobo spider bite is not considered to be fatal, however the spider’s venom is strong enough to cause local pain and also to cause tissue death at and near the bite. Because hobo spider bites are often mistaken for the brown recluse spider bite, it is always a good idea to bring in the spider if possible when seeking medical attention, which should be immediately after any spider bite.
The impact of a hobo spider bite is much like the brown recluse spider. Pain might not be associated with the bite, but a small hard area may appear within 30 minutes of the bite.
This bite area will be surrounded by an expanding red welt that can reach 5-15 cm in diameter. Blisters form within 12-48 hours, which eventually crust over the cratered wound. A scab can develop over necrotic tissue that eventually sloughs off. In some cases, tissue loss is so severe that surgical removal of damaged tissue and repair are needed.
The fully developed lesion may reach 3 cm or more in diameter which may take several months to heal and often leave permanent scars.
The occurrence of systemic illness is variable. However, the most common symptom is a severe headache, sometimes occurring within 10 hours (sometimes ~30 minutes) that does not respond to aspirin. The headaches have been compared to migraines and may persist for a week, sometimes accompanied by nausea, weakness, fatigue, temporary loss of memory, and vision impairment.
Here is a picture of a Hobo Spider Bite:
Very detailed text about the Hobo Spider can be found here:
Myths about the Hobo Spider by Rod Crawford at the University of Washington
Hobo Spider Web Site by Darwin K. Vest
Written by Jim on June 16th, 2006 with
124 comments.
Read more articles on Spider Bites.
- [+] Digg: Feature this article
- [+] Del.icio.us: Bookmark this article
- [+] Furl: Bookmark this article
Ok here is my ? and i dont know if i will get a comment back but i would really like on my little girl is 3 and we have had alot of spiders this summer especialy wolf spider and HOBO i thought the spiders where something else but there not im going to have my house sprayed because my 3 year old got bite now she has a very bad spider bite on her ankle on the back of the leg the doc put her on medication but im afraid she is going to get really sick .. im looking for early bite pictures from a hobo can you send any
Hi MarGena,
The Hobo spider is not a good climber and is usually found at ground or the basement level. Chemical can help, but the best bet in preventing
The Hobo Spiders from entering your home is by making sure a tight seal exists between the foundation and the wood structures of a house, and in all low areas of entry such as under outside doors. Ground vents and basement windows should be properly sealed or screened.
Most (%50 +) hobo spider bites are dry defensive bites where no venom is injected. When envenomation does occur, both local and / or systemic manifestations may appear; usually, right after envenomation, a large area of erythema (redness) forms around the bite site. This erythema will usually disappear in a few hours, leaving a small reddish hard area.
Blistering may occur within 24 to 48 hours and may rupture, leaving an open ulceration that will eventually turn into a scab.
Around three weeks after the hobo spider bite, the area will become pronounced looking much like a target (bulls-eye). The end result (about 45 days) is a small scar but in some cases, could take up the three years to heal – this usually only happens when bitten in an area of fatty tissue.
Long-term sequelae from a hobo spider bite may include intractable burning pain, a damaged vascular system and cyst development in the area of the bite. Approximately half of the people who are envenomated by the hobo spider suffer systemic effects that include severe headaches that may not respond to over-the-counter analgesics, dry mouth, nausea, weakness, lethargy, dizziness, visual disturbances, hallucinations, and joint pains. In rare cases, aplastic anemia will develop several weeks after the bite and this may be fatal.
As for any pictures of early hobo spider bites, I don\’t have any. However, I am positive that our readers would love to see one and if you can take a few pictures, I would be more than happy to post them on this site for everyone to see!
I hope that helps!
Jim.
Have something on my inner thigh, I thought it was a pimple or something but I tried to pop it and it didn’t so I am thinking that maybe it is a spider bite but I am not sure. It is red and swollen and it feels as if it would be a bruse.
Can you please send mean email telling me if it is a spider bite and send me some pictures of early spider bite fitting the description that I gave you if it is a spider bite please.
my fiance has a sore on his foot and i was wondering if it could be a hobo spider bite. could you please send me a picture of a hobo bite in the early stages? thank you!
We have had a lot of different bites around our apartment building and I was just wondering if I could get pictures of what the HOBO bite looks like. I have pictures of the bites that we have been coming up with. Now someone in my family has a staph infection and the doctor said that he can’t tell us what bit him first to make it become a staff infection so pictures in all stages of a HOBO bite would be great.
my fiance has a sore on her foot and i was wondering if it could be a hobo spider bite. could you please send me a picture of a hobo bite in the early stages? thank you!
different case/cut-paste
thanks
I I totally agree with these ladies. I myself just got back from the doctors being told that I got bit by a hobo spider. I wanted to see just what I was going to be seeing in the next couple of days and weeks. I was told what to expect but seeing ahead what to expect would be better. Please post pictures. Thank you.
I have what looks like a spider bite, it started about a week and a half ago, it is in my lower back, it first started as a pimple, about 4 days ago it really started to hurt it even hurted when I walked, 2 days ago I couldn’t take the pain any more so I showed it to my husband.
He was really concerned because he has already been bitten twice already by a spider and my daughter once before. When he saw the spider bite, he said it looked pretty bad, I cant reach to see it my self cause its on my lower back, my husband tried popping it two nights ago.
When he first squeezed it was really thick blood and pus came out which splattered all over the place like it was just ready to come out.
That pain was terrible it was worst that when I gave birth so you know it had to hurt, I still feel a lot of pain, my husband wants me to go to a doctor but I don’t have the time plus I don’t even know what kind of spider bite it is.
I do know it’s really swollen, it has like 3 different colors, black, yellow, and green.
Please, if you know what kind of spider bit me please email me ASAP. I would really appreciate it.
Thank you.
Recently my brother has develop numerous ulcerous type sores on his leg. One of the sores is about 1″ and has gone clear to the bone. He is under a doctors care, but it seems to be getting worse because more sores have appeared on the same leg.
I feel that they are spider bites, but I am unable to get anybody to support my theory. Yesterday the one near his knee was filled with pus filled blood and it was swelled. I iced the area to take the swelling down but it didn’t help. The temp around the effected area was approximately 102.6 F. My parents took him to their house, I have suggested to my parents that a spider may have bitten him, but they don’t think a spider could do that much damage. I am in desperate need of as many pictures of what hobo spiders can do so that I can get them the information so they can make the correct call. I am afraid for my brother and want to get the best for him.
Kimberly
damn I got bit by 4 spiders in a row that I caught I think there was a wolf spider 2 house spiders and one hobo. I stuck my hand in a jar playing truth or dare and then I got bit 4 or 5 times and it seems like my hand could be falling off. So, Please help I don’t know what to do about the bites.
I have a blister or bump in my lower right of my knee and i tried to pop it but when i do it opens and blood and pus comes out and it really hurts i think is from a hobo spider bite but its spreading could you write back and tell me what might it be thank you. Oh and its hard and red all over the area.
2 days ago i was watching tv in my room and i felt something on my lower stomach and i looked and it was a big spider that fit the description of a hobo spider. i have a few red pimple looking bumps but i pop them and a little pus comes out but when i put pressure on it it feel exactly like a bruise.i was hoping any one had a picture of a hobo spider bite in it’s early stage.
thanx john
Can anybody in Northern California (Sacramento Area) please tell me if they have been bitten by or seen a hobo spider here? I know they aren’t suppossed to be here but we are always told that about brown recluse, too, and I know they are here. My family has been bitten and the symptoms are identicle to the hobo bites descibed here and elsewhere.
I have this enormous bite on my butt that is the size of a nickel and it hurts like no other seriously and I have no clue what it might be … but from what I have seen on this page it seems like it could be one of these spider bites.
I live in alaska, and over the last 10 years i have been searching for more and more information on hobo spiders and recluse spiders in the area. I am wondering tho if there is any research on any anti-venom, or possibal immunity to the hobo’s bite.
I have been bitten numerous times ( lucky me) and had since moved out of the house we lived in because of the spider problem. The new house we live in is having the same spider problems, they get in at ground level and around any windows (second floor included).
Traps seem to work well enough at the ground level, I’m thinking of some sort of sticky tape traps around the outside of the second story windows (no one likes to roll over in bed and get a bite because you smooshed one of these nasty lil buggers). If there’s anyone else out there who has been bitten numerous times I’d love to hear back, perhaps an immunity can be built up and be used to help others in the future.
Till then, i got my newspaper at the ready and my oscar loves to eat the spiders I catch.
The hobo spider can produce some very nasty wounds, amazing!
I did not associate the pain at the back of my head with a spider bite until I found what seemed to be 3 hobo spiders or house spiders within a 2 ft of each other 7 feet away from my bed. Unfortunatly my girlfriend insisted that they must die emmediatly and had a smashing spree, followed by a vacuum.
Now that I’ve read a little about them I know I should have kept one for possible identification. I don’t have medical insurance yet, but it’s painful enough that I’ll take the extra fee’s to get antibiotics if appropriate. I’ll be seeing a doctor in the morning.
A picture of the Hobo Spider Bite on my head is below.
I think my dog got bit by a hobo spider. I’ve been seeing them in my house lately, running along the floor. I know I have some funnel webs in the bushes outside. Anyway, my dog’s face blew up, his eyes were all swollen and his chest got red. There’s still a mark on his chest that now has a scab on it. Any long term effects? I’m worried that his appetite has changed a little since that day.
What may be a hobo spider bite has been diagnosed by my doctor as shingles. could they be similar in appearance?
Well id get a photo of the hobo spider but i cant paste it :/
id like 2 see a photo of a early bite or get info cause we have spotted 2 in 1 day at my house and i think my step sister got bit and others may as well.
Billy,
To send a picture, just send the picture to the email address at the bottom of this page. I’ll clean it up and post it for everyone to see.
Regards,
Jim.
I was bitten in my car while driving back from a vacation around 7000 ft in the Sierras near Tahoe. I managed to flick the spider off of my arm before it could finish (painful) biting but I still have two fang marks about a 16th of an inch long at a 45 degree angle to each other. The spider was about 1/4 inch long with short legs, a stocky body and it was dark colored. It’s been two hours and the site is very slightly numb and very slightly swollen, otherwise I have no symptoms. Does anyone know what kind of spider this might be? Could it be serious?
I also think I have Hobo spiders in my house (I’m not convinced that is what bit me) and I am wondering if they might be a hazard to my cats as well as me. I saw on one site that cats sometimes eat them. I’m thinking of getting traps.
I have an itch on my right leg – outer mid-thigh. It looked like a small 1/32″ dark spot – black head so I popped it and not much of anything came out – sort of like a small pimple. My leg itches and there is a pale redish circle around the area of about 1 1/2″ in diameter with ever so slight swelling. I don’t know the cause but am watching it closely. Any ideas if this could be a spider? Thanks, Bob
Greetings from Ohio. I was cleaning my basement the other day and notice a nice sized spider on the floor, i went to capture it with a mason jar but it was way too quick and went under a shelf. Later I found one in the basement sink, which I was able to catch. I looked it up on the internet and all the caracteristics made me believe it was a hobo spider. I was wondering if there was a good site that could help me get more involved in determining its species. I have numerous of these spiders, inside the basement and I found one on my front porch. I captured it and made an aquarium for it so I could study it. When I was cleaning the basement a found an egg sack attached to the cold water line going to my washtub, but have noticed some small baby spiders that resemble the larger ones. Am I being invaded? Please help me out, in determining what exactly I have in my basement. I could take pics and send them if desired.
Brian
Tallmadge, Ohio
My daughter is 15mo. and lately she’s been getting bit by what we think may be a hobo spider. When the bit first appears it’s just a really red area that doesn’t look like a bit. Then a few days later the redness will go away and a blister that looks like a burn blister will appear and stay until she scrapes it open. After that happens it even looks like a burn blister would look like if it was scraped open. It doesn’t seem to bother her but she’s got quite a few of them. If anyone knows anything about this problem please let me know. Thanks, Kassi
I hope this is just a Hobo spider bite. I have no idea when I got bit because I didn’t feel it. Probably working out in my garage the other day. I estimate this is 24-hours after the bite. No signs of anything at this point except a bit of surface tenderness. Have to see what transpires overnight. Sending pic to your forum for others to see.
Craig in Seattle, WA
If you find out what kind of bite this is, please let me know. I have one just like it, except that you can see 2 identical red “fang” marks in the center of it. No tenderness, swelling or anything else, just the bite.
I have attached some serious photos of my hobo spider bite below. I have been bitten over 13 times now, 3 by the Fiddle herself and the other 10 by the brown, Hobo, and Yellow Recluse. All documented! I do not believe the University’s have accurate knowlege on just how far they have come or just how well they have adapted to our climate.
I have read Fiddleback reports as far as Alaska! Nahomtima L. Tumwater WA
will a hobo spider bite more than once my bite looks simular to the pic that is posted i also have 3 more little bumps all around it
Wow… these last set of pics just tied it up for me…
I was bit on my ankle this past tuesday by something… by today I was at the clinic seeing the doctor because the itch was too much and the wound looked absolutely horrible.
I was told at work (I work at a major garden center here) that we have spider mites but because the wound was bandaged they didn’t see it. The wound looks exactly like the pictures above and is about 1 1/2 inches in diameter.
I live in Greater Vancouver, BC and was wondering if there is any other type of spider that will leave similar symptoms? The other symptoms I was having was slight headaches and being tired… but I chalked that up to being very busy at work. Rarely do I get headaches….
Thanks!
I have been bitten by a brown recluse or a hobo spider several times now.
The first bite was on my jawline… could have been either type of spider, I am not sure as I never saw it… must have been bitten while sleeping.
My stepson got bit about a week prior to my first bite.
The first bite was over the summer. About a week ago.. I had what looked like a tiny bite on my tummy. I didnt mess with it, unti the pressure got to the point that I had to lance it and squeeze the stuff out… it helped a lot…
then a few days later I noticed a bad one ( just like the one on my jaw over the summer) on the inside of my left mid calf. I have been opening it up, draining it and applying antibiotic ointment and a bandage… if I dont keep it moist with the cream and bandaid.. it seems to eat at my skin more and become more sensitive and red.
Now… the new problem…
A couple of days ago.. I noticed what looked like a hard cyst like pimple on my left cheek. I tried to open it up… but nothing came out. Well now, two days later.. it is a big, swollen, hot sore like the bites….and there appears to be two there.
I have seen a bit on recurrent spider bites… is it possible that these few that I have now are a product of the first? Or is it possible that I can have this many bites at once??? leg, tummy, and face…
this is getting really old… I would appreciate and help.
I was bitten by a male hobo spider on the nose, it first look like a pimple then was a blister that just oozed it was swollen so I put apple cider vinagar on it after the blister oozed then put poroxide on it and then made a paste with salt and vinagar and put a bandaid on it, this was while I was at work when I got home I washed the area with soap and water and put epsom salt on the swollen area. I made a paste with water and epsom salt and pressed it up against the area for like 30 minutes, the swelling went away immediately and it now seems to be healing and scabbing over.
I keep neosporin on it in the morning and at night it is still tender around it about the size of a quarter,and is still red, and all the skin is pealing off of my nose. I have noticed since the bite I have this sharp pain go from my nose to above my eyebrow and I am extremely exhausted and have slight joint pains in my arms. The thing I am worried about is that most of the web sites I have reviewed say that these bites can cause bone marrow and renal failure.
I don’t have medical insurance so I have not been to a doctor, but am wondering should I go to the doctor if the wound is seeming to heal, it says that it could take up to a month to 2 years to completely heal. I caught the spider and have it in a zip lock bag, so that I could do research on it. My nose looks like the above picture#2 on #28 and it has been about 2 weeks since the bite.
If you have any information for me please let me know. I would appreciate any help. Thank you.
I live in Idaho and we have seen many hobo spiders in the house. About five weeks ago I woke in the middle of the night with a pain on my leg. When I got up and went in to shower I noticed a large black mark on my leg. I didnt remember anythng that I had done to myself to give me such a bad bruse. It made me suspisious. I went to the doctor and he was stumped. It had started to ooze so he took a culture and it turned out to be a staff infection. I kept it dressed and it took about three weeks to heal. As it healed a white hard spot developed near the center and the skin came off the entire black spot. The spot is still purple and insanely sensitive. I guess my question is about the after effects. I am exausted constantly I cant get compfortable enough to sleep more then three hours at a time. I had horrable head aches the night before it happend. Now it seems my body is overly sensitive and my joints are killing me. How long if it is a hobo spider bite can I expect to experence these symtoms or should I start looking in another direction. could these symptoms be just from the staff infection? The injury site looked exactly like the documented ones on this site. Any possable help would be appriciated.
I think i been getting bit by this hobo spider. iam not sure. but i have a few bites in my tummy area, they look like pimples one day..then they turn into hard blisters that hurt..if i pop them blood and pus come out…it looks like the picture that guy postesd of his head. thats what they look like =/
I live in WI, but was down in La for 4 days. when i got back right away i had three large bruises. one on palm, and other on left between thumb and pointer also the same on the right hand thumb and f finger. it itches and burns blistered up, and i am going on 5 weeks and nothing is getting better.
The doctors here are Not helping me!!!They think i am crazy that it is a spider bite. i also have the small pinhole looking ones all over my body like that one picture of the man in his garage. what do i do?
Headaches vomiting red swollen tongue feet peeling itching wounds still oozing on strong pain meds and that gets me ill to. i have weak knees and joint pain. can someone please help me?
I feel like i am all alone in this battle and scared!
I took pictures of my hands today and will send them as soon as i can get them developed. I also wanted to say that yes the headache is a migrane that never ends and the pain is undescribable that is so bad. I am a dancer, and can’t go back to work till i am better. i need to find out how to clean up these bites and also the little bites like that one man has a pic of. i know this sounds crazy, but toothpaste is known to help dry up infection and heal due to the floride. does anyone think i should try it? i know i keep going on and i am sorry but again i am begging for help here.
jane anne
Hello,
Bellow is a picture of my lower back where as best i can tell I was bit by a Hobo spider. This picture is from the evening of day 5.
I’m really looking for any advice on care and treatment. What if anything can be put on it. Should it be covered washed out. etc,,
The doc I went to did not give my bite a second look before putting me on antibiotics and telling me to apply a hot compress as often as possible, and my favorite part… ‘hope that it does not eat too much tissue away’. I have since read that neither heat nor cold should be applied.
What is the best course of action if your doc is clueless?
Thanks for your help!
That looks really bad and you need to see a doctor now!!! That is the tissue dying and it may need some type of skin Graff if you don’t get it looked at…
If anyone has any feedback about the picture of the man in the garage and his bite with the huge bruise around it, could you please let me know.
I got those after the main ones on my hands that I have told you all about. The doc doesn’t know what this one bulls eye bruise looking one could be and I am sick of hearing “we don’t know” even about the ones I have on my hands that are holes and look all the other pictures here. They are sending me to a dermatologist now to do some kind of biopsy and I don’t want to go threw this…so please any info no matter if it is going to be accurate for me or not I am interested in what you all have to say…
Thank you
Jane
Hello I am just commenting because I was a target for the hobo twice already and my bites (one on the ankle and just about a month ago on my cheek) they both looked like the pictures shown in reply #28 and #37. The thing I found that worked for healing it is just put triple antibiotic ointment on it and let the wound absorb it then apply more, be sure to apply it over the whole affected area not just the tender part. Putting a band aid on it didn’t help mine it made it worse found that out on the 1st one, it got deeper and more dead like looking skin around the affected area. I even found one cleaning caught it and killed it by putting it in a container with a paper towel dipped in nail polish remover or alcohol, it balled up too much though to send any pictures. Well I hope what I have experienced will help others.
Interior of Alaska
I have been reading all the most resent updates on the Hobo/brown recluse bites and I have to tell you it sure does bring back some painful memories, as you have seen from my photos. First let me tell you that most of the time you wont even know until it is too late that you have even been bitten, however I have devised a plan that if you should get to the blister before it breaks.
Make sure to take lots of Caution while tearing off the blister and draining the Poison; for any skin that the poison does touch, trust me will rot it. I did this on a few of them and they healed ten times faster. The first time I came up with the Idea, I took the thought to the Dr. at a local walk in minor emergency clinic and he listened to me and did just what I said. He was shock when he looked at all of my previous bites and trusted I must know what I was talking about after my 11th bite in a yr.
I have some more photos for everyone attached below.
Peace and Prayers to all and God speed in your Healing… From NaHomTima (ChocTaw Native American) “She Who Seeks And Gives” Tumwater WA
4/6/08
Hello to all,
Update,
I have healed up quite well after all my bites last year, and sad to say the scars are pretty bad. So far I have got a Arsenal of spider sprays,traps, and nets to kill any spider I see. I do want everyone to know that, yes spider bites can and will come back again and again for years, but you will know the difference between a re:bite and one that is fresh. Remember also that they are night time hunters and they are all over the USA, including the Greater Alaska.
Do not rely on what the so called spider experts say where the are, as I have found out the hard way with over 11 true bites in a year by both the recluse and the Hobo. Ours are not as large as the one you have seen in the photo submitted by another sender, never the less we have them here in the Pacific NW. We too are not supposed to have the recluse or Black Widow?but yet many here have seen them and been bit by them.
I have been bit. I am submitting more photos some with the webbing that you will want to look for, Hobo webbing. The recluse has numerous varieties and I seem to have attracted them all. Peace and Prayers from NaHomTima L. SAugust234@aol.com
Hello,
I caught the spider (see picture below) in my basement after the laundry tub overflowed. I believe he crawled out of a drain.
I did some research because I have never encountered a spider like this before in southwestern PA, and have come to the conclusion that it is a hobo spider.
I know they are located only in the state of Washington, but everything else seems to fit. Legs are not banded and hairy, no spots under the thorax, pattern on abdomen, and the palps appear to be double-pronged.
Bug spray did not work on him. He died in a jar overnight. Also, I had a wolf spider infestation around Christmas and had the basement exterminated, and this is the first spider I have encountered since.
I am concerned because if a hobo somehow made it into my basement; it is reported to be venomous. Any information you could provide would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Heather
oh my goodness look at the picture of Heather’s spider!!!!!!!
IN my experience – treatment for recluse and hobo bites is best done before it has a chance to start rotting from the inside out.
What I use on spider bites (including black widows) is a mix of betonite clay (sold as Aztec Secret) and cider vinegar.
Make this into a paste (it foams up), dab a thick layer onto a bandage and apply. Change when dry. Continue until the swelling and inflammation is gone.
I use this paste for bee stings, wasp and yellow jacket stings, spider bites, tick bites (after tick is removed), mosquito bites and poison oak rashes.
I’ve also used this as a facial “mud pack” for severe acne. Applied to an unbroken, pus filled boil, it will dry and detoxify before treatment is required.
The problem is that it needs to be made up fresh each time you use it – can’t be pre-prepared and sold in tubs or tubes – so it is really too much work for most people, who find it easier to smear a goo from the pharmacy or pop a pill from the doctor.
But it has worked for me and for my family – and for the folks who taught me about it.
The Hobo spider is a harsh little creature. man there are some sickening photos.
One of my good friends had accidentally ate or smashed up a Hobo spider in his mouth, the spider had crawled into one of his cups and when he was taking a drink notice something odd in his mouth and decided to spit it out but it was partly chewed up and smashed. What would you suggest that he do the abdomen of the spider was smashed and it was hard to make out.
Hobo spiders scare the heck outta me…I just freeze in sheer terror when I see one!!! YIKES!!!
Wanted to thank you all for the posts. My family and I live in Penticton, British Columbia Canada. Hot, dry and a perfect place for the Hobo, recluse, widow…… Just recently moved into a basement suit and found the hobo’s all over the place; tub, cupboards, closets.
I am super creeped out but, thanks to fear, I now know more about spiders than someone w/ fear of them should
looks like one of the best things to prevent a bite is too use traps (catchmaster is pretty good) and keep closets and storage areas clean.
I vacuum under my furniture including bed often.We also have no carpet except for the throw in the living room, hardwood everywhere else. Besides this, We try not to leave clothes or other items on the floor for the spiders to camp out or take cover in or under.
I have an almost three year old son and my effort is to protect him. as far as I can tell; these practices seem to be most effective.
A special thank-you to the web developer. Knowing more people have similar encounters really makes it easier to handle knowing you have a recluse or hobo spider problem.
Thank-you again
hi my friend just had a baby and where she lives is infested with hobo spiders from what i hear a hobo spider can kill a child is this true????
One year I got about sixty lesions that match these descriptions and photos. Antibiotics helped temporarily, but as soon as I was off of them, the sores were back. Turns out, they weren’t spider bites; they were boils. I had a mineral deficiency. Once I started taking a vitamin supplement, the boil problem disappeared. But now, twenty years later, if I go months without taking a vitamin supplement, the boil problem starts to reappear. Anyway, my point is, I think it’s important to not just assume you have a spider bite if you haven’t seen the spider, especially if you have multiple lesions. There are other causes of sores like this, and to properly treat the problem, it’s important to consider all potential causes.
Last Wednesday (june 11th) i woke up with pain in my right shoulder. I just assumed that i had slept wrong until i noticed the pain in my shoulder spreading to my neck, up to my ear, down the back of my shoulder and in the right side of my chest. Then i found what i thought was a pimple on the right side of my neck and searched this website. The Hobo spider bite sounds and looks alot like what i have been experiencing. The pain seems to go deep into my muscles causing stiffness. The surface of my skin feels as though i have been sunburnt and stings to the touch. Today while driving down the street i had the sudden urge of nausea. Does this sound like the Hobo spider bite to you? I dont have medical insurance so I have been waiting it out to see if it goes away but it only seems to worsen as days pass.
I noticed an irritation on the right side of my outer thigh (right where the butt meets the leg on Sunday June 22. I didn’t think too much of it and went to work on Monday. I noticed that it was swollen and painful throughout the day. I have a clerical job so I am sitting alot. I went home that night and looked at it with a handheld mirror.
It just looked really red. I thought it will feel better tomorrow and crashed. Well it didn’t feel better Tuesday or Wednesday. Just really swollen about the size of half a baseball and extremely painful. I wasn’t sure what it was and was rather embarrassed about the location. I tried to stay off of it as much as possible.
I tried Epsom salts to relieve the swelling and Tylenol to relieve the pain to no avail. I noticed a black spot on Thursday morning. I finally went to the Dr on Thursday evening and his reaction when he saw it was, “Holy Moly”.
He said that if he drained it it would be more painful. He gave me a shot of anitbiotic and a prescription for antibiotics and sent me on my way. It started draining a couple of hours later and has continued to drain ever since. The swelling went down of course as it drained but it continued to be very painful and looked horrible.
I have been ODing on Motrin IB to try to help with the pain and trying to stay off of it as much as possible. There was a lot of thick mucous like stuff coming out and I finally got rid of that yesterday only to find that underneath was a hole about the size of a dime that I could not see the bottom of.
I went back to the Dr today and he packed it and told me that I will have to go back daily for an unknown length of time and have it repacked. It is a painful procedure. It does feel a little better now. I don’t know if it is the packing of the wound or the light pain pills he gave me. LOL, maybe a bit of both.
Overall, I know I waited too long to have it checked originally so my advice is to seek medical attention ASAP if you think you have been bitten.
These are the scabs that formed on my leg several months after the original bites. We live in Montana and the Hobo spiders generally start coming in the house around August. It must have gotten in my pants and obviously kept biting. I now have fairly deep “holes” where the scabs were.
Two years ago I was bit by a spider on the back of my left thigh – I thought it was an ingrown hair or mosquito bite until it became so painful I couldn’t sit, drive or wear pants. Doctor put me on antibiotics but within days the infection and area was so bad there were red’ish lines wrapping around my leg up into my groin area. I was immediately rushed to a surgeons office wear she incised and drained the area. I now have a deep huge scar in that area. Just weeks ago I was bit yet again – front of left upper thigh.
I caught this one in time, kept it very clean! very important, try not to squeeze not much will come out. I used antibiotic ointment and also took oral antibiotics. I keep a close eye on it, keep it clean and cover when scab sluffs off. Remember infection doesn’t come out it moves down into tissue especially in fatter areas. So just because there isn’t any pus doesn’t mean you are safe. Our pest control man is quit sure that the chance of a Brown Recluse being in our area
(Sacramento CA.) is highly unlikely and suggested I investigate the Hobo Spider and this is how I came across this web site. My bites look exactly like entry #28 – never hesitate to contact your doctor and be proactive if they don’t seem knowledgable about spider bites.
Picture of my recent bite is 3 weeks after bite – Good Luck! sj
I have an infestation of hobo spiders in my house… I don’t know what to do about them, last week I saw one an inch in diameter. I haven’t gotten biten…YET. Please tell sound ways to get rid of them! I know they like cold areas and since they have nests under my house they come up in the summer… Thanks in advance
i think i have a hobo spider bite and i do not know what to do
Help me plz!!!
what do i do?????
it is probably the size of 2 big pimples(zits)
and it is red
Hello My name is Lindsey,
I recieved a bite at work about six days ago. I asked a co-worker to look at it because it kept hurting that first day. She said she saw two puncture marks and she thought it was a spider bite. That night I tried squeezing it to releave some of the swelling and hopefully get out some of the poison. Applied peroxide.
Second day had my parents look at it. (bite is on my back) and they opened it up cleaned it with peroxide, golden seal. I had them clean it out because I kept having the feeling something was inside.
Third day, my fokes tride it again.
Fourth, applied a compress of hurbs to draw out the bad ?,
five days and it kept getting reader and started turning brown in the middle with the imediate skin white then to red. Raised and swollen. Is the size of a dime. My dad said it was looking more and more like a brown recluse.
Sixth day, tried to get some sun on it. My muscles started hurting underneath. Tired and having trouble thinking. Middle is turning greyish black and is spreading. It is about the size of a nickle. Finally decided to check out the internet and see what kind of spider bite this could be. Tomarrow . . .
seventh day, Planing on going to a Naturopathic doctor.
Question: I did not see the spider that did this, so how can I treat it? Is it inportant to know what kind of spider did this? If it has to be surgically removed, do they remove muscle too? And last question does the body fill in the hole left behind?
Thank you for any advice or help you can give.
I would just like to know what I can do to treat a hobo spider bite locally?
All I have been doing so far is putting neosporin on a bandaid and then the bandaid on my bite. This stuff is getting very ugly and its right on my neck and getting larger by the day.
I certainly hope this won’t leave a giant scar on my neck!
I’m sending you some pictures of the bite.
Great information and thanks in advance!
Hey lindsey d, Out of all the research I have done for myself I can only tell you my honest opinion that you have probably been bit by a brown recluse. Look on the bright side, at least its not in an obvious spot like your face, neck arms or legs.. Sorry for your misfortune, Good luck
I live in Idaho. My toe has been irritating me for the past couple days, I ignored it thinking it was a flea bite until yesterday when it started hurting. I found a blister like the picture in one of the previous posts. i lanced it but since yesterday it keeps filling with fluid and the red spot is getting larger and larger. Hobo spiders are everywhere in the house. Here is a picture of my toe on what I think is day 3.
hello ,,andy here feeling a little sick..well i live in Idahofalls Id. I was told that I could have been bit by a hobo a few days ago,,well looking at this site,my roomate looked over by my bed and found a large hobo,it is about the size of a quarter.Well how ironic is that. After reading all of this,i hope it doesn’t get any worse..My bed has no frame under it and the blankets ,,sheets reached the floor .due to me being disabled,this has allowed them to crawl right up in my bed when i am sleeping..I found baby spiders in our spare bathroom,in the tub,,and i have found out that they dont crawl out of the drain..well thanx for all the stories…I am going to show this spider to a doctor.andy
Just so you all know, these Hobo’s are really nasty, and thank heaven none of us has been bitten. I first noticed an oddity on my lawn about eight years ago–tiny webs from the West as they came across, more each day. I’m a photographer, so I was very interested (can’t find images now-sorry-just learning digital and managed to lose them) this was in late April. By May, our basement was infested. I learned all I could, and used glue traps ONLY. NO PESTICIDES!!! If you use pesticides, they learn to defeat them and come back stronger the next year. I developed Wolf & Jumping spider habitats, and even stopped killin Black Widows, because they are natural enemies. I have been completely Hobo spider free for five years…until this morning. I found a 2-3 year old female Hobo in my laundry room sink! (Main level.) Can they crawl in through the plumbing?
alright…….I have done some picture research of those hobo spiders that are on the net…..and I have some questions of my own here…..
1. -first…….I had caught one of those spiders in my house, and had sent it to an entymologist in Victoria, and he told me it was a GIANT HOUSE SPIDER. so I believed him because he is the expert after all……however…….a meth head friend of mine came over with holes in her skin that were very similar to the holes that are seen in these pictures of the others that have been bitten by the hobo spider. So I am guessing that what I have here in williams lake british columbia is a HOBO SPIDER, and not a GIANT HOUSE SPIDER…..
however……just from looking at pictures of the two spiders……I really cannot tell the difference between a HOBO and GIANT HOUSE…….so usually I just kill them, and that ends my spur of the moment decision of what they are……
2. -so having said that….now…..does the GIANT HOUSE SPIDER do the same damage as the HOBO, because those stpuid things are everywhere here…….
3. -and as for the treatment of those bites…….what is the treatment o those bites…….what can be taken to prevent the damage from being done by them………??????????????
anyhow, I very much look forward to a positive response to your answer if at all you have some….or maybe you can direct me to some site where I can find out more……….so far I havent found anything succcessful for the treatment for bites.
have a good night,
blackjack.
Sent you photos yesterday…Have used sticky traps and caught 5.
Have 14 bites, migrated to almost 100 lesions. Have been on oral and topical antibiotics.
Providence says I need an anti-venom kit, or the gravitational drift will keep occurring. (My immune system is very poor). Also with some of the original wounds, there was a “pocket” under the scab, which I picked out and healing began immediately. Is this the right thing to do? (I saw an online brown recluse victim pull two venom sacs out of a really nasty bite).
Thanks, I’m pretty sick and miseraable.
Hi, I live in Washington. I find spiders in my house just about everynight. I think there Hobo spiders, or Wolf spiders. Anyways I woke up one moring and my neck felt like I had been punched in the muscle, and I figured I slept wrong but I looked and there was what LOOKED like a pimple that I had been picking for a while, anda nasty one at that… But it happed over night.
One thing that really scared me befor I found out what it was, was that I hada huge sore lump NEXT to the bite also… I found out it was one of those glands that you have along your neck that was swollen to help fight infection.
I was really scared becasue of the fact that the bite was on my neck..close to my head. Infections near heads are not okay. So I went to emergency care and I was perscribed antibiotics.
This bite keeps getting worse though it seems. The skin is really hard and red, my doctor tryed to pop it to get a sample to send to the lab, only clear fluid and blood came out. I will find out on Monday whats going to happen.
Your site has been really helpfull! thank you,
im sending you some good pictures of my bite right now.
Over the last couple weeks I’ve been seeing a large spider, or different spiders of the same appearance and size. Anyway, last Saturday I noticed that I had a bad blister on my ankle, which was very painful. I was also very dizzy, had a bad headache and was having a hard time sleeping. After the blister burst and after a couple of days didn’t even start to heal, despite my keeping it bandaged and covered in antibiotic cream, I started wondering how I got it, as I hadn’t been hiking or anything that could have given me the blister.
Then I noticed that spider again, coming down the hall to my bedroom. I captured it, then started looking at spider photos online. I see that Large House Spiders and Hobos do look very much alike, and even if it is a Hobo, I can’t know that it’s the one that bit me, or really, to even be sure that what I have is a spider bite, despite all the coincidences of these spiders being around just at this time of the year, my noticing them and then not long after, having the blister and sore on my ankle.
Anyway, I started looking for more info on Hobos, and especially how to treat the bites at home- I’ve always been terrified of doctors and never go in to get stitches, etc., but have always been able to do a good job of patching myself up, use herbal medicines, etc., and figured I could take care of it myself. But it’s a shame they haven’t done more studies to determine how frequent serious spider bites really are, just what you can truly expect from something like a Hobo, etc. There seems to be some major differences in opinion on the subjects and no clear answers!
Here’s the best picture I got of my spider-
Thanks,
Roger B.
Dundee, Oregon
I live in the pacific northwest and we have these spiders in our garage that are big brown and sort of furry. I have always been told they are Wolf Spiders? Are they and if so are they dangerous to humans and pets? Thank you… Corinne
I too am trying to identify between very large suspicious spiders. If you can get a good shot of the eye pattern, a comparison to an online source is very helpful in identification. Other more certain methods appear to be only possible through microscope. I’m no spider expert and the House Spider, Wolf Spider and Hobo Spider are very similar. The eye charts helped me out a lot. Some spiders however i just couldn’t be certain. So… I’m getting rid of the wood pile!!! Three spiders a day is getting crazy. Good luck.
Here is a link to WSU.edu information on how to identify a Hobo Spider.
Hey, I just read this page and there’s one bit of SERIOUS misinformation on it. I’ve gone around correcting this myth at some other sites; unfortunately it’s pretty widespread.
When bitten by any potentially venomous creature (snake, spider, etc), never, ever, EVER try to bring it to the hospital with you! Not only do most MD’s have ZERO training in identifying venomous animals, and not only does it carry the risk of the animal escaping IN the hospital, but you’re very likely to be bitten AGAIN while trying to catch it! A general description of the animal is as good as anything as far as MD’s go, especially given how difficult spiders can be to identify (a positive ID on a brown recluse, for example, often requires examination of it’s internal organ structure under a microscope).
Does anyone know about long term effects from a spider bite?
My mother, she is now 63, was bitten seven or eight years ago on her leg. Its only assumed it was a hobo spider bite as she never saw it but the doctors were pretty sure thats what it was. The bite affected her so badly that they had to put her on daily IV’s for several weeks.
Starting a few months ago she began having progressively bad nerve pain in her leg right in the area where her huge bite scar is. Its gotten bad enough that at times she can’t walk on it. The doctors are mystified at the situation and have tested for many things with no results. They all seem rather clueless when it comes to spider bites and their answers about whether it could be related all tend to be along the lines of “I don’t know.”
Anyone know if it could be related or is it just coincidental?
Hobo Spider bites. Your site has been very helpful,
Nest under my workbench, bitten 14 times in about 10 days, developed into
over 100 lesions. About 20 are still open after 4 months.
Had experienced sudden vomiting, diarrhea, sudden profuse sweating, blurred
vision.
Went to Urgent Care twice, got antibiotics, referred to a dermotologist who
put my in (zinc based) leg wraps, Followed up with Clobetasol Propionate,
.o5%
CJ
i think that was ring worm! not a spider bite. i had ring worm when i was younger and it looked just like what you had on your neck. i got it from baby cats that had it.
Okay, now that I saw Sandie’s pictures, there’s no way I can sleep tonight! My husband got bit by a Hobo a couple of days ago, working out in the yard. (At least I HOPE he got it in the yard, and not in our bedroom!)
He started antibiotic yesterday, but so far, it is just getting larger and uglier. It is now larger than mu hand, with the fingers outstretched. Hoping it recedes soon…
I believe ive been bit by a hobo spider, i too have a large looking pimple on the middle of my back that is sore to the touch. I live in georgia, but i believe i got bit becuase i was setting up christmas trees that were delivered straight from washington, a known state for the hobo spider. The only other time ive had something like this was when i got my smallpox shot which left the same kind of pimple that i have now on my back. sounds like its going to heal the same way too, eventually scabs over and falls off after a month or so leaving a small visible scar. Best thing to do is NOT pop it, let it scab and when it scabs keep it covered always. Most infections happen when you open the wound, your body is keeping it sterile and safe with the blister.
my friend got bit by one twice. on eon each leg and both times she had to have surgery for them.
O.K. I live on the coast of central Ca. We are not supposed to have Hobos. Well, the spidery kind. On christmas eve my daughter said “Mom, that burn on your arm looks pretty bad!” What burn? On the back of my elbow i had a bright red ring with a solid whit center. The next day the center started turning bluish black. It has blistered, my elbow joint aches in the morning, I’m tired! Does anyone here think this thing could have traveled down from Or. or Wa. in my Christmas tree. My arms were so far in there putting in the lights. I went to urgent care once and the P.A. had no idea what he was looking at. I am going to insist on seeing my Dr. Mon.
Thanks for ant info.
Melissa.
I want everyone to know that a paste of water mixed with bentonite clay applied to the bite will heal it. Just keep the clay paste moist with a piece of saran wrap and some medical tape. Change it a few times a day. Within one or two days the venom will be absorbed and the site will heal up quickly and nicely. Sometimes it will work in a matter of hours.
My husband has gotten three hobo bites on his neck, one of which gave him headaches and blurred vision. Maybe there are no drugs that can help, but bentonite clay paste will do the trick.
oh my gosh! sandie, that looks bad! i really hope you get better soon!
My wife is bitten on the leg one week ago by a spider, we’re living in Rosharon, TX.
At first I thought was a bite Recluse Brown Spider, but to watch the pictures of HOBO spider bite, I’m not sure because the wound look similar, I really hope her get better soon.
Jerry
Update from Jan. 4th. It is now Feb. 3erd. I did go see a Dr. on Mon. Jan 5th. She was not my reg Dr. She said that is not a spider bite.(even though I brought her a bag of baby spiders that looked just like hobos I had picked off my tree when I took down). Just keep taking the Keflex the urgent care guy gave you. It just got worse. At my sons pediatrician apt. Fri. the 9th i asked her to look at it. From across the room she said how long has that been there! Before Christmas. She said it was MRSA. Which looks just like a spider bite. Resistant to all but two kinds of antibiotics. I have been on two rounds of MRSA drugs. Have been to my reg Dr. twice.
He is a Air force surgeon and MD so I’m sure he know a lot about MRSA. The Pediatrician has also seen me twice. The ped. finally wanted to just cut it out this week, the MD/Surgeon said it was to close to my elbow joint and could spread the disease into my whole arm. the “hole” that grows and loses a scabe every now and then has gone down about half way. Today I get to drive to another town to see a dermatologist. Maybe he will know about Hobos. MRSA should have been gone weeks ago.
I was bitten six weeks ago on the forearm. I am pretty sure it was a hobo or brown recluse. It looked exactly like #58 from CJ and I put neosporin, peroxide, anti-itch cream and after 5 week it went away..there is a scar. It never got infected. Now I have a heat sensation intermittently on that same arm, it moves around. Could this be nerve or tissue damage from the bite?
Should I consult my primary physician?
My son developed the same looking sore on the top of his arm, the school said they thought it was ringworm. It is suspect…..will his pediatrician know how to treat if we don’t know what type of bite, fungal it is?
Thank you for your reply,
Julie
Well – I left the second message on here on the black widow boards two-ish years ago and just last week I wound up testing the “If you’re going to be dumb, you’ve got to be tough” philosophy in spades.
I was moving some lumber when I felt a small prick on my shin. I knew how to react and slowly put the wood down and then pulled up my pant leg as fast as I could to get a visual of the interloper who decided I was a worthy challenge to his octopedal homestead.
I was staring right into the all-too-distinct face of Mr. Tenaria Agrestis. The little bastard had got me twice in the shin and I saw him crouched down on my leg giving me a third (and thankfully dry) bite. I brushed him off my leg and went into the house and tried to force the venom out of the wound, using a cylinder syringe (no needle) to suck up what I could get out of it. Which was nothing. Crap.
I knew what to expect (I am in college for my 4-year in Bio to go get a degree in Arachnology) and I also knew that there were worse things I could have been nailed by, like a brown recluse. I patiently waited (while fighting off waves of nausea) for the bite to mature so I could lance it and drain it and then pack it with gauze. Since I deal with spiders a lot I always make sure I have everything to manage an attack except the prohibitively expensive antivenin, and if it’s a widow and you catch it in a half hour or so everything’s fine.
Well – the thing got BIG. Bigger than most bites I’ve seen on the internet and definitely the WORST single envenomation I’ve ever seen from a spider, and it happens to the guy who likes spiders.
Go figure.
It took three HOURS and excruciating pain and nausea (I vomited twice just from the smell) before I removed a lump of hardened tissue that large enough I had to cut the edge of an open wound to make it large enough to get it out. This kind of thing is rare, as most of the bites wind up producing not much more than squishy necrotic tissue that seeps out of the wound when pressure is used – but apparently I was special.
I wound up filling a 2/3 cup measuring cup with the refuse and had to dig in the crater with a Q-tip soaked in rubbing alcohol (the single most painful thing I’ve ever felt) to dislodge the core of the bite and pull it out with (sterilized in boiling water and then acetone and a flame) tweezers. It was the rough size of two kernels of corn taped together and behind it was the core trail of dead flesh, which smelled stronger than the rest of the bite – I firmly believe that cellulitis from a staph infection on the chelicerae (fangs) of Mr. Hobo was the hard “core” and the trail behind was the necrotic flesh affected in the intial bite.
Right now the crater is large enough I could fit my index finger in it, but seems to be healing quickly. Hope it does – easily the WORST spider I’ve ever come across. I’d gladly take another widow bite (or dozen) over the chance encounter with another hobo.
I felt a pain on my back the other day, and my fiance looked at it and said it looked like a huge pimple, but it was bulging out of my back. There was a lot of pus coming out of it, but it was still swollen and completely red around it, like a bullseye, completely red around the outside. I tried squeezing it because it was very painful, a lot more pus came out along with some hard dish white stuff. It felt a lot better, but it was still red and painful. There’s been a scab on it, and today I just touched it to see if it was OK, and my hand was full of liquid, so I went into the bathroom to check it out. The scab was half coming off, and I was squeezing some blood and pus out, then i pulled the scab back a little bit and it completely came off. I was shocked because there was this huge gaping hole in my back! It’s like a crater! I took a picture of it. I have a pretty bad headache right now, I’m not sure if it’s from that, like one of the symptoms, or if it’s just a normal headache. I’m not sure what to put on the hole. I put some peroxide on it to clean it out a little bit. Should I go to the doctor, or just put on some neosporin and tape it up with a gauze pad? Here’s the pic:
i like spiders but not ones that bite
I would like to recommend Tea Tree Oil also on spider bites while on anti biotics, it is used for gangrene in Australia. I have used it on bee stings and it was always pain free and helped immediately.
I also put one capful in a quart of water with a tablespoon of dish soap and spray outside of my home to keep lots of insects at bay.
I have also read that u can take pipe tobacco and boil it in a gallon of water and spray it around outside to keep insects at bay. My husband got a terrible spider bite and it had fang holes, and turned black like a golf ball under the skin, I wish I know about tea tree oil then. But we would also have sought medical advice, along with using tea tree oil. You can purchase it in Wal Mart in the vitamin section in a small brown bottle. Here in Georgia we have these sand red spiders that resemble tarantulas hanging from the trees to their silk lines that look like fishing line. I am terrified of them. I drive school bus and spray the bus outside a lot to keep them off. I have heard thet they also hate the taste of lemon oil and lemon from a bottle sprayed around. Does anyone know what kind we have by my description. Are they dangerous, they seem to live in holes in the ground. Sincerely, Louise
Hope this helps, Louise Brooks
I had a friend a couple years ago get bit by what I think was a Hobo spider with very similar reactions to what you described above Zachary. This was at my old residence and I had left a bottle of food grade H2O2 (35% hydrogen peroxide) in the fridge. He used that on the wound several times to clean it (wound crater was size of pencil eraser at the time). After the initial boiling from the H2O2 oxidizing the wound he went to a doctor who wrapped it up and it started to heal up within the next couple of days. Mind you this peroxide is much stronger than the 3% stuff you buy in grocery store. But folks can pick it up at most health food stores. Within three weeks his sore had healed up completely though he does still have a scar from it. This level of peroxide can be dangerous if mishandled though as it will oxidize and burn your skin if you spill it. So if anyone uses it, be careful.
I live on the Oregon coast.
I was bitten 3 times on the fore head in July 2003.
The symptoms as described were a pain in the butt but no too bad.
The scars remain as large pocks and sometimes itch. No pain is associated with the bites. I read on another site the scars will last forever.
Hi I live in Southern California this is the 3rd time I’ve been bitten by what I think is a spider. I suspect black or brown widow to be the spider bite. The 1st time I was bitten I had a swell on my arm that got real hard, red and had a lot of little blisters. I had body aches and fever for about 2 days, the swelling went away in about 2 weeks time and took over 4 weeks to completely heal, later I found what looked like a brown widow in a car I bought from out of state which I had been working on during the time I noticed this swelling.
The second time, about 5 months later I developed the same swelling and irritation on my hand which also made me believe it was a spider bite cause it was the same but did not develop any fever or body aches, now over a year later I developed another swelling that has the same description as my 1st “bite” this time I just had a little fever and I notice a little numbness on my shoulder blade which is about 12″ away from the bite on my right arm. This happened after I removing some dead skin from my palm trees that is a good hiding place for black widow spiders and some that look like the hobo spiders.
This is a update from my previous articles that I have submitted. I am Back! Yes I have just gotten over one of what my personal Doc says to be the worst of the worst bites he has ever come across. I got bitten out at my daughters house that she recently bought and moved into up in a wooded area. About 3 weeks ago I was out in her garage cleaning some things up and all of a sudden my daughter screamed “Mom, you have a big black spider on your shoulder” well needless to say I too screamed and jumped around and then There it was, The Brown Beauty we know as Fiddleback” I
really didn’t think that she got me, but about three days later my glands around my kneck and under my arm pits where the size of golf balls, and then there it was right on my right scapula a huge bite. Now this one took the Cake so to speak. Not even I had seen one of this magnitude. It was as big as a Grapefruit. The first week I just watched it, and by the end of that week 1 I couldn’t even lift my right arm. It had become truly infected. From Sunday until Thursday I was in the most God awful pain I ever new. Wednesday I went into the local Emergency Dept and the Doc looked at it and said OUCH! He put me on some strong Anti-biotics and said if there were any change what so ever I was to seek help immediately.
So by Friday I was back in again and that is when I had to be surgiclly opened. About 3×3 and at this point of explosion over a cup full of pus and blood came out. He removed the Black necrotic flesh and packed it with about 21/2 feet of packing. I was now given the diagnosis of MRSA 2nd darry to Brown Recluse Spider Bite. I am now going on a month of healing from this Beauty, and am done with the packing. However I do still have a crator where the bite was, but my healing time was cut in half from applying a oil to it called Oil of Oragano.
MRSA is carried on these spiders, the Hobo and Recluse. I have studied these spiders that I completely respect and kill, and for what I have found out is that at night when we sleep they come up and drink from our Nose and those that carry MRSA give it to the spider: and when we get bit, thus enters the Virus MRSA. Most of the time when we get bit by them with exseption to the HOBO, it will be on our backside or arm or foot. They bite out of defense. Now the Hobo, he will right down where we are and bite out of shear meanness. I will be submitting some resent photos of my bite very soon once I get them all together. Until then Peace and Prayers from NaHomTima LeFlau “She Who Seeks and Gives Things” Tumwater WA.
We get hobo’s in the house annually. Around this time of the year. By now (the past two years) I would have killed anywhere from 15-20 after dealing with an anxiety attack. Trust me, when you can hear them drop from the shower to the floor… there’s a problem.
Anyhow, my boyfriend woke up around 4AM this morning talking extremely loud. Cursing this way and that, hitting the bed. A hobo had crawled along his arm and woke him up! Last I heard from the “experts” hobo’s can’t climb walls or anything. My bed is in the corner even on RISERS that raise my bed an extra 4″. I’ve seen them on walls, I’ve seen them come out of vents even when they say they don’t travel through ventilation. However… I’m now afraid to sleep at home, of course my room is in the basement, but does anyone have any idea what the heck is going on if they are ending up in my bed and I’m not putting anything additional ON my bed from my floor to begin with? I’m POSITIVE these are hobos… 200%.
I was bitten what the doctors thought at hte time by a brown recluse. After seeing all the pics on this site it may have been a hobo spider instead. That was my sophmore year of high school–April of 1991. Yes I still have the crater scar, it’s about the size if a dime, luckily no bigger. As for the treatment, I was given a prescription for antibiotics as the doctor said since I waited until day three, the anti venom would have no affect. So 2 weeks of antibiotics, and several times a day of flushing it out with peroxide( I actually scrubbed it out with peroxide and many cotton swabs). Around week 3 I noticed the venom sac, used tweezers-it was hard to grab a hold of until I dried it over and over, but woulnd’t give up until it was out. Finally was able to pull it out and yikes! The sac was about and inch long and a centimeter in diameter. Didn’t hurt at all since all the tissue was dead around it. After it was out the wound scabbed over and healed rather quickly. All in all it was 2 1/2 months before skin stopped peeling, itching was manageable, and my leg pain/soreness was gone. It was a real bummer when it happened, it was just before our school dance and the doctor said stay off my leg. Almost 20 years later and I still have the occasional itching, just in the scar, peeling of the scar as well. It’s not bad just like I had been sun burned just on my scar. When my kids want to get close to a spider I just show them my leg and they back away. Spiders are not my friends! If they are outside, ok, inside they are smashed if I get them. This morning my daughter found a hobo in her closet, I called the exterminators and set up an appointment to spray the whole house. Goodbye spiders!
I feel for all of you, and hope for the best. I’ll say a prayer for ya’ll.
a few days ago we noticed a sore on the side of our cat’s mouth, we thought it was in ulcer or even cat acne which he had when he was a baby. he got a biopsy done yesterday, but after spraying the outside of the house we’ve already found 2 dead hobo spiders next to the foundation. im convinced it was a hobo bite, the cats hunt and its perfectly plausible that it bit the inside of his mouth. its very hard and pussy, and there was a hole next to his gums, but still on his lip. the biopsy has been sent away but we dont have the results back, i called the vet letting them know i think it was a bite and im waiting on them to call be back. honestly if its a spider bite id be much more relieved. because it seems like it something easier to fix than cancer…
My 8 yr old daughter came how from visiting n the southern oregon coast for 7 days..They told me that she had a sliver or rock in her hand from falling and had healed over and was infected..It is in the fleshy outer corner of her hand..I took one look and thought..duh dummy..it is a spider bite. then noticed another on her thigh..The one on her hand had been there for almost 7 days and was raised and could see two brown spots in the center and pus balls on each side.
The flesh was starting to protrude out from the center from being so tight and swollen..I am a medical assistant and instantly squeezed and got out major blood and pus..and pulled some of the center out of it..till it ran straight blood..and let it bleed..I then pushed from the bottom which is very hard and extrememly painful for her..I got more pus out and no more blood..I sprayed it with hydrogen peroxide and kept it covered and draining for the whole day..The skin is purple and shiny and going down to her wrist joint. I put a home remedy poltive of baking soda and cayenne pepper on it last night to draw out more poison till I could get her to Dr this morning.. It looked much better today but still looks bad…To my utter amazement when i told the Dr she had 2 spider bites..1 7 days old and one 3 days old he actually told me..” That is a myth..there are really not that many spider bites like people think..it is insects that bite us..not spiders”..Are you kidding me???…He prescribed septra and said to come back in 7 days for an I&D (drainage basically)..
I could not believe this guy. So we are going to use the antibiotic..I am going to do the hot water soaks to keep the sore open and draining so I can keep squeezing bits of the pus and gunk out and put the poltice on at night with a bandaide…Any other suggestions or recommendations would be greatly appreciated…My baby girl is in alot alot alot of pain and is still very hard on the bottom of the wound….
I am visiting my parents for the fourth of July in SW washington. I noticed what I thought was a mosquito bite on the back of my leg two days ago. It was a little itchy bump. After it bothered me for about 12 hours of incessant itching I noticed it was growing. It had doubled in size and was hard. Now it has a red dot in the center of a quarter sized red circle and the hard area is between a golf ball and a softball size. My friend said it looks like a really bad ingrown hair. It is starting to burn in addition to itching and I have a rediculous head ache. My friend said its a hobo bite and to get to a doctor asap! I will go tuesday (two days but the school drs is closed until then and I’m a poor college student). This headache is making me nautious. I don’t think there is much I can do until I get to a doctor but I figured, even though my camera sux, I would post some pictures. Which I have to do thru email I guess.
I have about 9 bites total. I have no idea when they could have happened. I noticed them around 9pm tuesday night while at work in one area and then as the night went on and into the next day I noticed the rest. They have small amounts of clear fluid in them i squeeze it out and then later more fills in or a tiny scab like crust covers them. They Itch. How Am I supposed to treat them and do I need to call my Dr.???I dont think I have ever had a bite before and if I did I never really noticed.
Thanks Amanda
i was just out doing some yard work and when i got done i have what looks like two little tiny slits and i havent identified the i didnt feel any insects so im just curious if it vould actually be a hobo recluse or widow in an early form or any other spiders
What kind of spider is this?
if you know what a baby hobo spider looks like please let me know we have those hobo spiders and another kind in my house they look simair but im not positive it is a baby one
thank you
Tea tree oil works well as a topical natural antibiotic and speeds up healing. My friend had 2 hobo confirmed bites on forehead and leg.both bite sites became extremely necrotic.she received antibiotics which did not seem to do much ,after a few weeks she tried the tea tree oil..in a full bath soak and the applying directly to bite site twice a day with swabs.she healed within a month and scarring was minimal.her home was infested with dozens of hobos,thankfully she moved.
my son had a small red mark on his index finger, at the middle joint.
Within 10 hours it had become a small, red, hard bump. Did not hurt. Thought to be possibly the beginning of a wart. By this morning when he woke it has a large, almost clear bubble blister over the spot. The spot Under the blister ..now appears to be a little larger than last night and yellow. No redness, no pain.
We live in Chicago area, but have had house guests from Europe….Not sure if this is a hobo spider bite but the large blister creating over night is unexplainable.
Any thoughts or suggestions.
Please help